Asian grocery stores are my "happy place." When I lived in Texas I had no less than 4 Asian grocery…read morestores within a 2 miles radius of my home (if that). H Mart was my favorite, followed by Ranch 99. Unfortunately, here in Wisconsin, I have to now drive nearly 10 miles to get to the closest Asian market! So when I heard Pan Asian was opening in my area (2-3 years ago), I literally marked my calendar for opening day. I'm so happy they're a part of the community now!
First off, today, LOUIS deserves a big gold star (if not a raise, hint hint, management, lol). Not only did he stop what he was doing, but walked me over to what I was looking for. TWICE. No eye-rolling, no exasperated sighs - nope, he just said "sure, it's right over here..." THAT kind of customer support alone goes MILES for those who are new or unfamiliar with a place (as I was), and makes me want to return again soon!
Like many Asian stores, Pan Asian had elements of "chaos" throughout the store - they were doing lots of stocking when I was there (mid-afternoon on a Wednesday), and the music was a bit too loud (Note to management: background music is supposed to be just that - in the background, quiet and atmospheric - not a dance club). As at other stores, Pan Asian needs to keep tabs on their price tags - many were missing, or the product above the price tag was NOT the product on the tag, or 2 different but similar products by the same brand with only one price tag made shopping a bit frustrating. But as I always do, I'll have a short list of 3-5 items, and end up leaving with a cartful. For me it's easy to spend a solid hour or more there, just oooh-ing and ahhh-ing over all the exotic items, the live fish, the interesting kitchen goods (even if I can't read 99% of the labels). I always try to leave with something new to me; today, it was pickled plums (I've started making sushi and onigiri at home, and heard pickled plums were a Japanese favorite with onigiri). They're awesome, but very salty, indeed. Their produce section is large, amazing, and FRESH. Hard to choose what to get from that section, as well as their bountiful flavorings, sauces,
Speaking of, I was thrilled to find that the store also has an incredible sushi selection and yes, even onigiri too (though TBT the price was a bit steeper than I hoped, and I could not find any onigiri molds in their hard goods section). I must admit that several items I looked at throughout the store seemed rather pricey - not sure if that a tariffs thing, or an import thing - so I will stick with Woodman's for my "regular" shopping, while supplementing with more of the fun Asian items I find at Pan Asian!